Let's Misbehave
by xxFiraWriterxx
Summary: Meet Higari Chise, a 14 year old globetrotting girl who hasn't lived longer than a year in any one place. She finds the idea of settling boring and, of course, that's exactly what happens. Now living in Japan, where she attends Seishun Academy, Chise catches the attention of both the boys and girls tennis team. So without further ado, let the mayhem ensue! (Paring decided by vote!)
1. Chapter One

**A/N: Hey! This is my first fanfic posting! For those of you who bother to read this, thank you so much for giving it a chance, I really appreciate it. Anyone and everyone is welcome to share their opinion (constructive criticism is especially welcome). Flamers feel free to flame if that's what makes you happy – doesn't mean I'll pay you any mind though. **

**Right! Now that's out of the way, to the story! Oh, wait! I almost forgot...**

**Disclaimer: I don't own ****_Prince of Tennis_**** or any of the affiliated characters. I only own my OCs, Higari Chise and my version of the Seigaku Girls Regulars. **

**Now! On with the story!**

* * *

**Chapter One:**

**The Memorable Entrance of Higari Chise (Part I)**

Chise had come to a decision.

She absolutely hated going to school.

From the crowds of hormone-crazed teens right through to the monotone teachers who prattled on about things she really didn't care about. What good did it do her to know about photosynthesis? She wasn't a plant! (not that plants consciously realized they were photosynthesizing...or did they?)

What made matters even worse was being a new student. A _transfer_ student. She'd spent the better part of her week hounded by her classmates. Questions were asked and offers were made to join clubs and teams. Chise could understand that.

But really...what business did they have wanting to know her BLOOD TYPE?!

Horoscope love tests and Zodiac whatchamacallits were a load of bullshit! So she was a Scorpio born in the year of the Monkey! If she wanted to date a Taurus born in the year of the Ox, she'd damn well do it!

"Eh~? That was amazing!" "As expected of Fuji-kun!" "Tezuka-kun is so cool!" "I'd say he's hot!" "All the regulars should be models~!" "Kyaaah!"

And then there was that...

Girls surrounded the tennis courts, faces pressed against the fence as they watched their favourite tennis regular warm up with creepy eagerness. Chise was rather put off by the sight of her fellow females literally throwing themselves at the boys.

_Legs spread wide open with a sign saying: 'Entrance for Seigaku tennis regulars only'._

Chise shook her head, trying to clear that horrible image from her mind, before turning her back on the embarrassing spectacle and continuing her search for somewhere quite to relax.

The roof was her first choice, but it was occupied by a couple of creepy girls perving at the tennis boys through rainbow-coloured binoculars. Apparently, it was the only safe way to get an eyeful of their "_future boyfriends_" without being trampled to death by "_the horrible sluts trying to steal them away_".

Yeah...a shit load of crazy up in here.

And thus began her search.

ヽ(◕ ◡ ◕)人(◕ ◡ ◕)ノ

It took a good half hour to find a decently quite and secluded place to relax for the rest of lunch...and for the rest of her classes, because Chise had every intention of sleeping. She was still jet lagged and, if she had things her way, she would be back at home working on strengthening her relationship with her new bed.

But alas, her brother had spoken.

She plopped down at the base of a tree and closed her eyes. Things were getting a bit out of hand and she was beginning to feel like an endangered animal at the zoo, what with all those gawking eyes following her every movement.

And what was with the fan club that suddenly materialized out of thin air? Seriously! It's not like she was any different to the other girls at school. Her grades were average, she didn't bother with athletics (she became bored far too easily to commit to any sport long-term) and in the looks department she was pretty ordinary. Even her breast size wasn't anything to brag about.

But she was one of the few _sane_ girls who weren't completely and utterly obsessed with those tennis boys. And she was supposedly "_exotic_". Not entirely true. She was born in Japan to Japanese parents, the only thing was that she'd been travelling the globe since she was barely a year old.

Which is why she found herself getting so damn bored.

Because her parents had announced it...

This was the end of her globetrotting days!

That thought was so depressing she wanted to cry. She was used to excitement, used to constant change. How were things going to change when she stayed in the same place?

Chise had never lived anywhere for longer than a year, but even that was unusual and drove her insane the handful of times it happened. Only this time...this time it wasn't just for a year. _Oh-no_... Her parents wanted her to finish middle school _and _high school _IN JAPAN_!

Not that there was anything wrong with Japan. She'd been back to visit a few times over the years and she quite liked it...for short periods of time. But FIVE freaking years was five years TOO LONG!

Chise sighed let herself slide to the ground. She stretched her arms out to the sides and opened her eyes, taking in the cloudless sky that, despite changing appearance, would be the same patch of sky she looked at for the next five years.

_And I've now successfully depressed myself..._

"This sucks..." she muttered to herself. "Every's so boring..."

Nothing was ever interesting for long, which is why being born into a globetrotting family was such a bonus. There were so many radical changes from country to country that it stopped her from succumbing to her boredom. It made things so much more fascinating.

"_But that's the problem_," her self-proclaimed therapist declared one day. "_The reason you become bored so easily is because you've been subjected to constant changes. You don't know how to commit or how to deal with commitment because every friend you've made, every club you've joined and every school you've been to were only temporary."_

All of it was 100% true. Chise was willing to admit to that, but she wasn't too eager to change it. Even if she committed to something, it wasn't a given that it would relieve her of her boredom. She was far too fixed in her ways to change anything.

"_Find something that motivates you. Something that inspires you,_" her self-proclaimed therapist ordered her that very same day.

If it were that easy, Chise would've done it a long time ago...maybe...

Her eyes drifted shut once more and she took a deep breath before exhaling loudly. Chise desperately needed a nap. She was starting to hear _that girl's_ irritating cheerleader-like voice in her head.

ヽ(◕ ◡ ◕)人(◕ ◡ ◕)ノ

Chise didn't – repeat, did _not_ – appreciate having her sleep interrupted. Could it even be considered sleep when she'd been woken up literally only minutes after having closed her eyes?

Yes...yes it could.

Her eyes snapped open at the sound of a _loud _terrified shriek and she shot up ramrod straight from her position on the ground. And the first thought that popped into her head was; '_she...will...DIE!_', followed closely by '_you've got to be kidding me..._' once she saw the cause of the commotion.

She watched as three girls from the girls tennis team (made apparent by the ridiculously short skirts and tennis racket-shaped bags strapped to their backs) dragged another much shorter girl (who was quite obviously a first year) behind them and roughly pushed her to the ground.

Was it normal to just lay there and take abuse? Because that's what the poor girl was doing. Tears streamed down the girl's cheeks as she silently accepted her seniors' verbal abuse from where she sat.

Now, Chise wasn't the type to normally get involved in other peoples business, but in this case she was more than willing to make an exception.

Getting to her feet with an irritated sigh, Chise patted down the back of her stupid uniform (yet another reason she didn't want to spend the rest of her academic life in Japan) before settling her left hand on her hip.

"Damn you guys are loud," she complained, catching their immediate attention. "Seriously, if you're planning to bully your kouhai, the least you could do is make it less obvious."

The apparent leader rounded on her and glared with great big pudgy eyes. Chise blinked at her. _'A frog... She reminds me of a frog..._'

"What's it to you, carrot top?" she snapped.

Unfazed by the apparent taunt, Chise gently tousled her short orange hair. It wasn't like she hadn't heard that one a million times before. Having the "ginger curse" throughout elementary school (and now middle school) made her the perfect target for teasing.

Chise never really cared much about it. Her brother called it an "immunity to bullshit", she just referred to it as "realizing those people are complete idiots".

Yawning loudly, she stretched her arms before folding them behind her head. "I was taking a nap...which you so rudely interrupted. So, how about backing off?"

The girl sneered. "Do you have _any_ idea who you're talking to?"

"Osage-san," Chise glanced at the girl still sitting on the ground. "Do _you_ have any idea who I'm talking to?"

"E-Eh...?" the first year stuttered as she furiously wiped her tears, completely and utterly taken aback by the nickname.

"Shut it, Ryuuzaki!" the ring-leader snarled, kicking up dirt at the poor first year as she approached a deadpanned Chise. "Mika! Tamara!" her two lackeys were immediately by her side. "Who's this?"

The near identical girls examined her from head to toe with blank brown eyes. "This would be the new transfer student. Higari Chise."

With a lazy grin, Chise graced them with a mock bow. "At your service."

"I see," the girl narrowed her pudgy eyes but otherwise ignored the blatant sarcasm. "So you're new. You don't understand the hierarchy."

"A hierarchy you say. Hm, does that make you the queen then?"

The girl smirked. "As close as it comes. I'm Kitagawa Megumi, captain of the Seigaku Girls Tennis Team."

"Oooh, a captain~" Chise sang in mock admiration.

"Precisely," Kitagawa was pretty oblivious when it came to jibes about her title. Apparently she thought that everyone would be in complete and utter awe of her. "I am the ultimate authority when it comes to the girls tennis team. I am the best. I am– Hey! Don't just walk off whilst I'm talking! Listen to me!"

Chise had wondered over to the first year during Kitagawa's ranting (she was positive the captain just liked hearing the sound of her own voice) and started up a conversation with her. Apparently, the first year was the coach's niece, Sakuno.

"Eh?" the orange-haired girl glanced back at the fuming tennis captain. "Sorry. I have a very short attention span and your rant was starting to get boring."

"I won't overlook this," Kitagawa spat through clenched teeth. "I challenge you to a ten–!"

"–I don't play tennis."

Kitagawa merely smirked. "Is that so? That's such a shame. And here I was, more than prepared to offer you a reward if you win."

Her ears perked up at that. "Reward?"

"Yes," the captain folded her arms along her chest. "If you win – which I highly doubt you will – I'll happily lay off the hopeless first year for the remainder of the year."

Chise glanced at the first year gripping tightly onto the hem of her blazer. "That sounds fair."

"It does, doesn't it. _But_," Chise stared at her in suspicion. "If you lose, you'll be my slave for the rest of the year without complaints. Do we have a deal?"

Sakuno's grip tightened. "S-Senpai, don't do it."

"Go cry in a corner, Ryuuzaki. That's all you're good for," Kitagawa sneered as she took a threatening step forward.

Chise immediately blocked her path. "I accept."

_'Who said things wouldn't get interesting...?'_

ヽ(◕ ◡ ◕)人(◕ ◡ ◕)ノ

"Tennis racket... I need a tennis racket..."

Sakuno walked beside her with a worried look on her face. "I-I'm sorry you can't use mine, senpai. I-It's too small."

"Eh?" tearing her eyes away from the search, Chise glanced down at the first year. "It's not your fault, so you don't need to apologize."

"B-But it _is_ my fault. This whole thing is..."

Chise said nothing. It wasn't for lack of trying that she remained silent, but because, no matter what she said, the first year was well and truly convinced that this whole situation was her fault.

Besides, Chise had more important things to think about at the moment. Like how the hell do you play tennis anyway? It was hitting a ball back and forth, it couldn't be too difficult right?

Difficult or not, the stakes were too high for her to lose. And she couldn't pull out now because that would still be considered a loss. There was absolutely _no way in Hell_ that she was going to be that pampered princess' servant for the next year.

What really pissed Chise off was the fact that, despite having more than one racket each, neither Kitagawa nor her lackeys were willing to lend her one. Something about not wanting their precious equipment to be soiled.

Those were Kitagawa's words. Chise had the distinct impression that the twins wouldn't have cared either way.

At that moment she spotted her soon to be racket supplier.

"Oi! You!" a random guy walking past stopped and looked at her. "I'm talking to you!" he looked around before pointing to himself, Chise just shoved him aside. "No, not you! The tall guy with the spiky hair!"

Sakuno stared wide-eyed after the orange-haired girl as she marched up to an equally surprised tennis regular. It was only when Chise reached him that she made note of the ridiculous height difference. _'Would I even be able to play with his racket?'_

"Let me borrow your racket," she demanded.

"Eh?" he smirked down at her. "And why would I do that, chibi-chan?"

"Listen here, Uni-san–"

The boy glared at her. "I'm not an urchin!"

"And I'm _not_ short!" she snapped back. "Now are you gonna let me borrow your damn racket or not?!"

"Definitely not! We're in the middle of practice!"

He swept his arm in an extravagant wave towards the tennis courts where, lo and behold, the boys tennis regulars were in fact practicing.

Normally, Chise would have first noticed that Kitagawa had skipped her way over to a stoic boy with thin-rimmed glasses and was attempting to coax him (with her "womanly wiles") into lending her a court. But instead, Chise found her attention drawn to something else.

Chise stepped up to the fence and threaded her fingers through the metal. She watched in muted amazement as the regulars challenged each other. Incredible serves, powerful returns, agile displays of acrobatics...

She didn't quite understand it. How could something as simple as hitting a ball back and forth be so...so...electrifying?

"So this is tennis..." she muttered to herself.

"You play, chibi-chan?" the boy questioned.

Chise couldn't tear her eyes away from the court. "I'm trying to, but you won't lend me your racket, _Uni-san_."

"The name's Momoshiro Takeshi, _not_ Uni-san!"

"Ah, Higari Chise. Nice to meet you," she replied lazily. "So can I borrow your racket?"

Momoshiro's eye twitched. This girl was really beginning to bug him. "Why do you need my racket?"

Finally looking at him, she smiled innocently. "I'm going to use it to make an offering to the little elves that live in the shoe lockers."

There was a moment's silence during which Momoshiro stared at her as though she'd just grown three heads, sprouted a tail and turned purple with green spots. All that could be heard was the rhythmic thud of tennis balls, until...

"You're CRAZY!" he threw his hands in the air for extra emphasis.

She grinned. "Certifiably."

Momoshiro's shouting had drawn the attention of the regulars, even going so far as to get the attention of both Kitagawa and the stoic boy (who, now that she thought about it, was probably the boys captain).

They approached, his dark eyes landing on her briefly before focusing on the spiky-haired boy. "Momo."

Swallowing hard, Momoshiro turned to face his stoic captain. "Tezuka-buchou..."

"Your rally with Echizen will have to wait. Kitagawa-san has requested use of one of the courts," Tezuka stated, earning a hurried nod from his junior. He then turned to Chise. "I believe there is a spare racket in the changing rooms. I'm sure Momo will be more than happy to grab one for you."

"Wha–!" a stern look from Tezuka was all it took to have Momoshiro smiling amiably. "I mean, of course I will!"

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**Hey! Hope you enjoyed it! Please rate and review, I'd love to know your opinion.**

**As mentioned in the summary, the main OCxRegular couple hasn't been decided but will be put to vote as soon as Chise has had story time with the others. **

**So, hopefully, the polls will be open some time soon. **

**Until next time!**


	2. Chapter Two

**Chapter Two:**

**The Memorable Entrance of Higari Chise (Part II)**

**A/N: Hello all! Sorry for all the exclamation marks but I'm a bit hyper! Hehe! So here's part two of Chise's memorable entrance! Hope you enjoy it! A quick shout out to etsuki-chan4, LunaLightSerenade, Drops of Azure and Crystalin0160 for liking it and giving me the confidence to post this next chapter! Thanks a lot guys!**

**Right! So, before I forget!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own ****_Prince of Tennis_**** or any of the affiliated characters. I only own my OCs, Higari Chise and my version of the Seigaku Girls Regulars.**

**Now! On to the match!**

* * *

"Pst..."

Momoshiro twitched, but otherwise continued to ignore the irritating girl who'd been vying for his attention the entire time he'd been searching the change rooms for a decent spare racket.

He'd found three so far, but none of them could even be considered useable without some serious maintenance. And he wasn't going to let Chise use any faulty equipment because, if he did, Tezuka would probably have him run laps.

"Pst...Momoshiro..."

"What?!"

Giving in to her incessant calling, Momoshiro straightened and turned to the door. Any and all irritation evaporated into the aether the moment he saw her. She looked ridiculous. The top of her head peeked through the doorway, showing only a mop of orange hair and a pair of sea foam eyes that surveyed the room with no small level of suspicion.

Were he not still somewhat resentful for having his match with Echizen postponed, he probably– no, he _definitely_ would've laughed at her. In fact, it was taking all his will power _not_ to laugh at her.

"What are you doing?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Her eyes darted briefly to the showers before focusing back on him. "Is there anyone in here?"

"Uh, I am."

She narrowed her eyes at him. "Not what I meant, Uni-san."

"The name's Momo. _Mo-mo_," he emphasized.

"Uni-san suits you better," she said as she finally stepped out from behind the door. "But I'm willing to compromise, Momouni."

Momoshiro rolled his eyes in response and resumed his search for a racket. "At least you've come out of hiding. I mean, seriously, everyone's at practice. Just who did you expect to find in here?"

"It's not about _who_ I expected to find," she replied, leaning on a nearby locker. "Unlike those creepy fangirls you boys seem to have amassed, I have absolutely no interest in seeing _any_ of you regulars naked. So until I was absolutely certain that no one else was here–"

"–hold on," her glanced at her. "So, because you _didn't_ want to see anyone naked, you thought looking around to make sure that no one actually _was _naked would be your best bet?"

She picked some fluff from her jacket with a blank expression. "Correct."

Momoshiro blinked. "Seriously...?"

Chise raised an eyebrow in question of his question, but Momoshiro just continued to stare at her with an incredulous look on his face. She couldn't be serious. There was absolutely no way anyone was _that_ oblivious to something that was so blatantly obvious.

But the questioning look on her face made him wonder and he couldn't hold it back any longer.

He laughed.

Momoshiro laughed so hard that he fell back onto the bench clutching his stomach. Chise just continued to stare at him, more confused than anything else. Was is just her, or was this guy kinda weird?

"T-Think about it," he managed through his laughter.

Chise's face scrunched up in concentration. There was a moment's delay before realization hit her and her eyes went wide. "Oh..."

"Y-Yeah."

Taking a deep breath, the second year regular managed to quell his laughter and looked up at the orange-haired girl. Chise was smiling again. It was a gentle smile. A smile that, for some odd reason, made a warm feeling spread across his chest and his heart speed up just a little.

Was he having a heart-attack?

No, that was ridiculous. He was in the prime of his youth and fighting fit!

Momoshiro watched her with surprising interest. She didn't conform to a stereotypical kind of beauty, in fact, she might be considered rather plain if it weren't for two things. Those oddly beautiful eyes that lit up as she appraised the room and that strange, yet charming curl to her smile.

He shifted uncomfortably. And there it was again, that strange palpitation.

Maybe he was coming down with something.

"–Momouni?"

It took a moment for him to realize that she was talking. "Eh? Did you say something?"

"Yeah. You gonna sit there staring into oblivion or are you gonna find me a racket?"

ヽ(◕ ◡ ◕)人(◕ ◡ ◕)ノ

"It's spongy," she commented to no one in particular.

Chise stared at the slightly worn racket in her hand with interest. It was her first time even holding one, so she hadn't known what to expect, but it definitely wasn't this. It felt surprisingly comfortable and even, dare she say it, almost natural.

It made her chuckle, because she'd tried "_every sport in existence_" (according to her self-proclaimed therapist) and never once thought it felt right.

She gently fingered the frame. The colour was a faded orange (somewhat fitting in her opinion), it was just a size too big for her and, according to Momoshiro, the strings were a little loose.

Momoshiro had tried to find her a more decent one, but after ten minutes of searching, she grew tired of waiting. Lunch was almost over and, if this game was going to happen, it needed to happen soon.

When Chise suggested tightening the strings, Momoshiro just stared at her before laughing his way out of the change rooms.

That jerk.

Apparently, tightening strings required specialist equipment and precise know-how.

"_Unless you're imaginary elf friends can magically poof you a racket, you've got no other choice_," Momoshiro told her. "_There's no time for you to go to a sports shop._"

That was okay with her. She didn't really care much, but the thought that something supposedly imperfect felt so normal made her wonder if a proper racket would feel even more extraordinary.

Gently swinging the racket back and forth, Chise followed after the second year regular with a small smile on her face. She had a racket now, that was sorted, but she still had no clue about the rules or the point system.

It couldn't be too hard, right? All she had to do was chase the ball around the court and hit it back over the net. Nothing too complicated.

"Actually," she tapped the racket against her palm. "Kinda sounds just like a giant pingpong game..."

Momoshiro glanced back at her. "Eh? Did you say something?"

Chise lifted her gaze from the racket and focused on his face, "Yeah," she quickened her pace until she was in stride with him. "I was just thinking about how you play tennis. It's just like pingpong, right? Only on a larger scale."

The second year regular came to an abrupt halt. Chise stopped a few steps ahead of him and turned to find him staring at her.

While he found her unintentional jibe about the sport he loved insulting, Momoshiro decided to let her off this time because it was obvious she had absolutely no idea what she was talking about.

"You've _never_ played tennis?" She shook her head and he gaped at her. "Seriously?!"

"Nope," Chise replied, popping the 'p'.

"Then why the heck are you challenging people to matches?!"

"I didn't challenge anyone," she replied with a lazy grin. "Amagaeru-san did the challenging. I just accepted."

"You–" Momoshiro paused in confusion. "Eh? Who's Amagaeru-san?"

"That girl. You know, the one who was with the stoic Megane-san. She has those eyes that remind me of a tree frog."

Momoshiro raised a hand to his mouth to stifle his laugh. "Don't let her hear you say that," he warned. "Kitagawa-senpai may be a girl, but she'd got the temper of a witch. It's scary, but she seems to be surprisingly popular with the boys. She probably cast some sort of spell over the–"

"–Oi! Sakuno!"

Chise sprinted off leaving the ranting Momoshiro in her wake. She blamed her short attention span. She was easily distracted, especially when the topic of conversation was boring.

A startled Sakuno jolted in surprise when Chise literally launched herself at the first year and nearly toppled the two of them over.

At some point during the ten minutes Momoshiro had spent searching for a racket, Chise came to an important decision. She would make the most of her situation. At least until her parents got over their mid-life crisis and they hightailed it out of Japan to travel the world once more!

_'I don't want to spend the rest of my school life bored out of my wits...'_

Making friends meant keeping things interesting, right? And because this first year was the reason for this _interesting_ turn of events (much more exciting than sleeping, though sleep was definitely on the top of her to-do list after the game), it only seemed right that Sakuno take responsibility and become her first friend.

"A-Ano, Higari-senpai..."

"Friends don't use honourifics," Chise pointed out with a lazy grin. "And you're my friend, right Sakuno?"

Her eyes went wide. E-Eh?"

"Oi! Chibi-chan! Don't just walk off mid-conversation!" Chise glanced up to see an annoyed Momoshiro stomping towards her. "Just how do you expect to win when you don't even know how to play?!"

Sakuno looked like she was going to have a stroke any minute now (most probably from too much surprise in such a short period of time). "Y-You don't know how to play, Higari-senpai?!"

"Chise," the persistent orange-haired girl corrected. "And no, I don't. But it can't be _that_ difficult."

"_It can't be that difficult,_" Momoshiro mocked before narrowing his eyes at her. "Just why do you think we practice so hard?"

Tapping her chin lightly, Chise pondered over his rhetorical question before answering. "To supply those hormone-crazed girls with fan service, of course!"

She beamed up at him and Momoshiro felt his eye twitch. "I give up," he declared. "You're on your own, chibi-chan!"

Sakuno panicked. "W-Wait! S-Senpai!"

ヽ(◕ ◡ ◕)人(◕ ◡ ◕)ノ

Chise flexed her fingers before curling them around the grip of her borrowed racket. She stood on one side of the court (which was far bigger than she thought) with a pensive look on her face.

In her mind she was going over the basics of what Momoshiro told her, albeit somewhat reluctantly. He still hadn't completely forgiven her for unwittingly insulting tennis, but after Sakuno pleaded with him, he just couldn't say no.

A girl on the verge of tears...what real man wouldn't cave to that?

Chise glanced over at Kitagawa who, as it turned out, wasn't the least bit concerned about the outcome of the match and was happily basking in the love of her personal fan club. It consisted of a group of misguided girls and delusional boys who (most likely) held onto the hope that the third year would notice them.

Speaking of fan clubs, Chise had her very own.

They were people from her class, the very same ones who'd been hounding her about blood types and horoscopes, and even a few people she didn't recognize. They cheered loudly, waving paper signs with her name in bright colours and glitter and...was that a picture of her sleeping?

"Eh? When did they take that?" she chuckled awkwardly.

It was a _very _close picture of her taking a nap under a tree. A picture that could have been taken at any point over the last week because she'd spent most of her time running from her crazy fan club and finding secluded areas to sleep.

Apparently they weren't secluded enough.

Her fans comedically flapped their arms about when they noticed her looking over at them. "Chise-chan~! You're so cool~!" "Do your best, Chise-chan~" "Yeah! You're the best~" "Can I have your number?!"

She twitched and turned her head away. "I _reeeeally _hate fan clubs..."

Raking her gaze along the fence, Chise realized that the fan clubs weren't the only ones showing an interest.

The prospect of a match was enough to draw a small crowd. Both the boys and girls tennis teams had decided to take time out of their busy schedules to grace them with their undivided attention, along with other students (having noticed the ruckus and become curious) unaffiliated to either club.

Only one person caught her attention.

_'Who's that...?'_

A girl stood beside the strict, glasses-wearing boys captain speaking to him with a very disgruntled expression on her ridiculously attractive face. Chise briefly wondered if she was a model because she certainly looked like one. With silky black hair falling to her hips, her tall shapely frame and long, looong legs how could she be anything but a model?

Yes, she was very attractive indeed.

"Oi, carrot top!" Chise snapped her attention to Kitagawa, who had broken away from her fans and was taking up position on the opposite end of the court. "You ready to lose?"

Chise just grinned back. "I'm so sorry, senpai, but I won't be able to oblige you today."

"Eh?" Kitagawa glared at her. "What do you mean by that?"

"It means I won't be losing."

ヽ(◕ ◡ ◕)人(◕ ◡ ◕)ノ

_'Holy crap, she's good!'_

The tennis ball whizzed by mere inches from her face and landed just within the boundary of the baseline. Chise blinked and straightened up from her stooped position. She glanced over her shoulder at the burn mark the ball had left on the court.

"30-0."

Four minutes into the game and she was already two points behind. And yet, despite her current predicament, Chise couldn't help but smile. This was exciting! Far more exciting than anything else she'd tried! Sports had never appealed to her because she always mastered them too easily.

She always won and that was boring.

There was never any challenge.

But maybe...just maybe...

_'Have I finally found something worth the effort?'_

Turning back to Kitagawa, her smile grew into a (slightly psychotic) grin. "That was wicked! Do it again!"

"Oh? Are you that eager to lose? Two more points and I win. Then _you,_" she pointed her racket at Chise, "are my faithful slave for the next year."

The orange-haired girl sweat-dropped. _'I forgot about that_...'

With a gentle shake of her head, Chise focused on the task at hand. Any overwhelming thrill she felt had to be curbed for the time being because Chise had no intention of becoming anyone's slave, especially not _hers_.

She settled into a comfortable stance as Kitagawa lined up her serve.

_Whack!_

The ball sped over the net and right past Chise who, recalling one particular move she saw one of the boys doing, instantly reacted. She pivoted back on her left foot, twisting her body as she drew her arm over her shoulder and slammed the ball back into Kitagawa's court with a surprisingly powerful backhand.

It was a perfect replication of the red-haired regular's acrobatic play. Well, it would've been perfect...if you over-looked the near face-plant at the end. Her fan club went wild as she straightened, looking quite pleased with herself.

Kikumaru Eiji pressed his face against the fence. "EEHH?! She's stolen my move!"

"N-No way," Momoshiro gaped like a fish. "That was a fluke. There's _no way_ she did that on purpose!"

"It was a good shot," Oishi Shuichiro praised with a gentle smile. "She's doing well against Kitagawa-san."

Fuji Shusuke, who (surprise, surprise) was watching the match through close eyes, simply smiled. "But it's surprising."

"Why?" A slightly confused Oishi asked.

Momoshiro watched the orange-haired girl casually twist the tennis racket in her hand with muted awe. "Well, she told me she's never played tennis before."

"E– EH?!"

"She certainly has potential," Momoshiro and Eiji jolted at the sudden appearance of Inui Sadaharu, their resident data specialist. He was scribbling something down in his notebook. "But it won't change the outcome of this match."

Fuji folded his arms along his chest. "Oh?"

"The chance of Higari winning this match is exactly," Inui pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose and gave a knowing (somewhat creepy) smile. "0%."

"30-15."

Chise turned to face her opponent with a grin wide enough to put the Cheshire cat to shame. That acrobatic play curtesy of the red-haired player, who she noted didn't look too happy with her borrowing it, had luckily worked.

"I think I might be getting the hang of this," she muttered to herself.

She frowned.

If she was getting the hang of it, how long would it be before she mastered it like all the others? It's always fun at the beginning, but the more she played, the better she got and the more boring it became. That was why she never bothered with sports.

Still...

Chise glanced down at the racket in her hand.

"This is the most excitement I've had all week," she muttered to herself.

"OI!"

Chise was snapped from her reverie just as the ball came flying over the net without any warning. She moved. Pushing back on the heel of her left foot, she pivoted and chased after the ball.

Managing to get ahead of it, Chise caught it on the rise and slammed it back into the captain's court. Kitagawa gave chase and returned it. The rally lasted only a few minutes before Chise unsuccessfully planed the ball just outside the baseline.

"Out! 40-15."

ヽ(◕ ◡ ◕)人(◕ ◡ ◕)ノ

Kitagawa wasn't happy at all.

She glared at the orange-haired girl with enough venom to poison a small country. The match wasn't going as panned. It shouldn't have lasted this long. She should've already won. The girl was obviously an amateur. Just because she'd managed to score _one_ point didn't change that.

Feeling something sliding down the side of her face, Kitagawa raised her hand to wipe it away. She was sweating. How could this girl be forcing her to work so hard? Kitagawa stared at her hand for a moment before looking up at Chise, who was slightly hunched over and panting.

It was to be expected. They weren't playing as hard as she would at a tournament, but it was certainly a stressful enough level to cause non-players to collapse. That Chise was still standing was an impressive feat in itself.

Kitagawa narrowed her eyes.

The girl had to be lying. She had to have at least _some_ tennis background to be able to keep up. And then there was that move... Kikumaru's move...

"It doesn't matter," Kitagawa muttered to herself. "I only need one point. I won't lose."

"Oi," Kitagawa blinked and focused on Chise's smiling face. "This is fun."

Fun? That confused her. What did it matter if it was fun? All that mattered was the bet. All that matter was winning and proving that she was the best. So, why was Chise smiling like that when she was going to lose?

"Shut it, carrot top!" she snapped back. "Get ready to lose!"

Shrugging off the strange feeling in her chest, Kitagawa bounced the ball a few times before lining herself up for the final serve. She took a deep breath and–

Four loud consecutive chimes broke her concentration and the ball was left to bounce towards the net. Lunch was over.

And so was their game.

It wasn't satisfying in the least. Kitagawa gripped her racket tightly. The game wasn't over and she refused to win by default. She _refused_. Her fan club cheered for her victory. She just ignored them, instead, focusing her undivided attention on the grinning girl that approached her.

"Looks like you won," Chise said. "And a deal's a deal."

The captain said nothing.

"Tennis is a lot harder than I thought," she continued, extending her hand over the net in a gesture of sportsmanship. "But I had fun."

There it was again. That word. What the hell was fun about it? She lost. She _lost_! Why the hell was she smiling like an idiot and saying that she "_had fun"_? Kitagawa stared at the girl as she patiently waited for her to accept the gesture. Just what kind of person was Higari Chise?

"Tch," Kitagawa scoffed and turned her back on Chise. "Screw the bet. You're annoying as hell."

With that said, she strode off the court without so much as a backwards glance. Chise just continued to smile as she watched the captain's retreating back and lowered her hand with a quiet chuckle.

"Looks like I'm saved by the captain's good grace," she glanced down at the racket in her hand and smiled.

_'Tennis, huh?'_

* * *

**Hey! Hope you enjoyed it! Please rate and review, I'd love to know your opinion.**

**The Seigaku regulars may be a bit out of character cause I'm still fairly new to the anime– to all anime in general, actually! So if you have any interesting anime for me to watch, please feel free to message me!**

**Until next time!**


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